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Catching up with a Steeler Super Bowl veteran

No matter what the function or the setting, former Pittsburgh Steeler Larry Brown is content to stand back and watch, all the while acting in a very friendly, yet dignified manner. The former tight end-turned offensive tackle is content to let others seek the limelight. He is a man who is highly successful, yet does not go around boasting about his accomplishments, of which there are many.

Brown, who played from 1971 to 1984, is one of just a handful of Steelers who played in all four of the team’s first four Super Bowls. Often overlooked by the fans, Brown was inducted into the Steelers Hall of Honor in 2019 along with Bill Cowher, Hines Ward and the late Elbie Nichols.

“To be honored by the Steelers in such a manner, is truly something,” said Brown. “When you’re playing, you really don’t have time to think about what you’re accomplishing. We were so focused on winning. That was our emphasis. Salaries aren’t what they are like now. We could make as much money by winning the playoff games and the Super Bowl as we were making for the regular season.”

“Plus, winning is contagious,” Brown said as he continued. “You can’t win four Super Bowls, without initially winning the first one. After that, we wanted a second one. Then we wanted a third one, and then another one.”

Long-time Steelers fans recall Brown making a four-yard touchdown catch to secure the win versus Minnesota in Super IX.

That 1974 season was his first season as the full-time starter at tight end. Brown started for two more seasons before moving to tackle. A knee injury prompted the move as the muscles in his leg had atrophied due to his having to wear a cast for a number of weeks. Once the cast had been removed, Brown was having difficulty doing some of the running required of the Steelers tight ends.

“Chuck (Noll) called me in, and asked if I would be willing to move over and get some work at tackle. We had suffered some preseason injuries on the offensive line,” said the former Steeler. “The plan was that I would move back to tight end when training camp was over. I ended up basically staying at tackle.”

Brown laughed as he recalled initially playing tackle at just 235 pounds.

“That was even light for a tight end, let alone a tackle. The next year, 1978, I got up to 245 pounds. Eventually, through the Steelers off-season weightlifting program, I was able to get my weight up to 270 pounds, which is what I weighed in my final season in 1984.”

As soon as his playing career was over, Brown got to work on losing that extra weight.

“That was football weight,” said Brown. “I didn’t want to carry that weight around with me the rest of my life. I watched what I ate and got plenty of exercise. Eventually, the weight came off.”

As his playing days were winding down, Brown was already looking ahead to the next chapter in his life.

“Chuck used to tell us to be ready to get on with our life’s work. He made sure that we knew that there was going to be a long time left to our lives after our football careers were over.”

Brown and three of his teammates, J.T. Thomas, Dwayne Woodruff and Louis Lipps, heeded that advice.

“We initially bought one Applebee’s restaurant. Then, we bought another. We followed that up with some more,” said Brown with a smile. “Eventually, J.T. and I started building our own Applebee’s.”

Over the span of several years, Thomas and Brown ended up owning and operating more than a dozen of the restaurants in southwestern and central Pennsylvania.

“I learned about the business world from observing the Rooney family and the manner in which they operated the Steelers,” said Brown. “It’s important to listen to people and draw from their life experiences. J.T. and I continually draw on our football experiences in the business world.”

Brown continued, saying, “No matter what your job is in our company, we want you to strive to be the best. Whether it’s cleaning, serving, preparing the food, greeting the customer; you are part of our team and our job is to serve the customer. We all need to work together to make this an enjoyable experience for the customer. For a football team to be successful, everyone has to pull together. The business world is the same way. It’s important to let your employees know that you value their work and appreciate them, both as an employee and as a person. We learned that from the Rooneys and from Chuck.”

“Life is a journey. You’re learning as you go,” said Brown as he wrapped up the interview. “Hopefully, I’m still learning.”

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